The Circle of Life

Is it me…or when the Federal or a State Government extends unemployment benefits…does it just cause people to want to stay at home longer? Allow me to explain…

I realize, in this economy, that a lot of people have lost their jobs through no fault of their own. And I have no problem with them receiving unemployment benefits while they look for a job. And, for example, in Ohio (where I live), you are supposed to be forced (ongoing) to look for a job and submit spreadsheets to the State in order to qualify for unemployment benefits.

But in the same breath…I could tell you 1M stories about people I know who never submitted the necessary reports to the State of Ohio and never looked for a job, but still received their unemployment benefits. And I could tell you 1M stories about people who heard that the Government was extending unemployment benefits and said, “Well, I guess I’ll just sit at home for a longer period of time now.” Bottom line – that is just not right.

Unemployment, just like worker’s compensation, should be for the ones that really need it. Not for the people who want to “sit at home.” And it seems like various branches of the Government are set on continuing to extend it – thinking they are helping the people who have been laid off – and to some extent, they are. But they’re also encouraging this same group to not look for work, especially if their state of residence is set up like Ohio – with no accountability. More and more of my HR colleagues seem to think it’s the latter these days. So in an economy where you’re supposed to be able to recruit top-notch talent – you find more and more people putting their job searches on hold. And then…because employment isn’t up, unemployment is extended. Ah, the circle of life…